An EB historian has been at work in Canada. The December 1939 issue of Canadian Aviation
publishes little-known facts about Canadian pilot training in the "Last Great War," by Frank H. Ellis. This
he follows with "Early Echoes" in the March 1940 issue.
He mentions our own "Fritz" Ericson and the manufacture of
"Canucks" (Curtiss JNs) in his yarn. And then publishes illustrations of scale models of the first six airplanes in Canada's history---the
Red Wing, flown by "Casey" Baldwin at Lake Keuka, 1908;
McCurdy's Silver Dart of 1909, the first airplane to be flown in Canada; a tractor biplane designed, built
and flown in Vancouver (1910-11) by William Templeton,William McMullen and
Winston Templeton; a Curtiss pusher purchased by EB William Stark, , of Vancouver, and flown by him 1912-15;
the two-seater, dual-controlled pusher biplane designed, built and flown by William A. Straith in
Winnipeg prior to the last war and a single-seater Curtiss-type pusher constructed and flown by EB Author Frank H. Ellis and Thomas
G. Blakely in Calgary, Alberta, 1914-15.

This article was submitted by Phil Vogler and is a very important revue of the development of aviation
in Canada. William Templeton is mentioned, as well as William McMullen and Winston Templeton. The most relative pagargraph is the
following:

"
The first aeroplane built and flown in Western Canada was a 35-40 hp. Anzani
engine biplane constructed in 1910 from their own designs by William
Templeton, William McMullen and Winston Templeton of Vancouver. A few
successful short flights were made from the racetrack on Lulu Island, B. C."

Description:
This book not only records the significant events of Canadian aviation but also pays tribute to the 'forgotten flyers who flew by guess
and by God or with calculating caution - for the sheer love of flying - in the early days.'

'Pioneers of the Air' recounts the first tentative experiments with that overgrown monster, the flying machine - at this stage, the
glider. Next come the Barnstormers, the first professional airmen, trying desperately to wrest a living from the air, pioneering in
the field of practical flying as little more than vaudeville performers. These were the days of daring aero-acrobatics and tense and
crowded air-meets. The First World War saw a tremendous advance in technical manoeuvres and in pilot skill; the first aviation school
was established in Toronto, where the War Birds learned to fly. An unparallelled boom in aviation followed the war. Public interest had
been aroused by the celebrated achievement of Canada's Air Force, and many young men, the restlessness of the war still in them, were
obsessed by the itch to fly again. The Dollar-a-Minute days marked the beginning of passenger travel and a steady increase in
experimental flying, to bear its practical fruit in days to come. The next chapter is one of heroic enterprise - the conquest of the
Atlantic and the spanning of the Continent. No less epic is the history of the bush pilots who tamed the Canadian North. We must be
grateful to Mr. Ellis for rescuing from obscurity this important chapter in our history.

I have no information as to the dates of his birth or his death.

Editor's Note:
If you have any more information on this pioneer aviator,
please contact me.
E-mail to Ralph Cooper